By Daniel Winningham
Missouri’s annual sales tax-free weekend is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 6, through Sunday, Aug. 8.
By state law, the sales tax holiday begins on the first Friday in August and continues through the following Sunday. Certain back-to-school purchases, such as clothing, school supplies, computers, and other items as defined by the statute, are exempt from sales tax for this time period only.
The no-tax holiday official begins at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, August 6.
It’s an opportunity for back-to-school shoppers to spend a little less.
“If you have a lot of children, that’s a lot of sales tax you don’t have to pay,” said Melissa Hurst of Computer Connections.
RaeAnn Fears, shoe department manager at Rozier’s, agreed with Hurst that the holiday is a savings opportunity.
“It’s an opportunity to save money, especially with multiple children,” Fears said.
“We are busy all three weekends in August,” Fears noted. “For shoes, August is like our Christmas in July.”
New shoes or a new computer are just a few of the items on many back-to-school shopping lists.
“It all depends,” Hurst said, when asked if there is a direct correlation on increased sales over the tax-free weekend here in Perry County. Some look for a computer upgrade locally, while others go elsewhere for such purchases.
The sales tax holiday applies to state and local sales taxes when a local jurisdiction chooses to participate in the holiday.
The city of Perryville has taken part in the tax-free weekend since its inception 2004.
According to the Federation of Tax Administrators, Missouri is one of 25 states with a tax holiday program in 2021. The holidays range in length from two to 10 days and apply to a variety of purchases.
